City Manager Lee Garrity announced the appointment of Assistant Police Chief Catrina A. Thompson as Winston-Salem’s 15th chief of police. Thompson will assume her duties Sept. 1 at the conclusion of the service of Chief Barry Rountree, who is retiring.

Thompson is a 23-year veteran of the Winston-Salem Police Department and currently serves as the assistant chief in charge of the Investigative Services Bureau. In this position she oversees the Criminal Investigations and Special Investigations divisions. She previously served in the Patrol Division, Recruiting Unit, Training Division and the Criminal Investigations Division. She also serves as one of the departmental commanders of the Crisis/Hostage Negotiation Team. She will lead a department with 570 sworn officers and 173 civilian positions, and an annual budget of $74.5 million. READ MORE

Collection Changes for Labor Day Holiday

City offices will be closed Monday, Sept. 4, for the Labor Day holiday. CityLink 311, the city’s citizen service call center, will not be staffed but non-911 emergency calls will be forwarded to on-call staff with the appropriate department. Requests for routine information or services may be submitted by email, through CityofWS.org, or with the CityLink 311 mobile application, for processing the next day.

All yard-waste and recycling collections for the week of Sept. 4 will be postponed one day: Monday on Tuesday, Tuesday on Wednesday, etc. There will be no change in garbage collections. For more information call CityLink 311.

9/11 Public Safety Challenge to be Held September 9

The third annual 9/11 Public Safety Challenge, an event that combines the city’s 9/11 commemoration with a competition for high school Junior ROTC units, will be held from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, Sept. 9, in the Winston-Salem Fairgrounds Annex. The event is open to the public and admission is free. Parking is free and concessions will be available.

The program will open at 9:11 a.m. with the city’s annual 9/11 commemoration. Afterwards, JROTC cadets from high schools in Winston-Salem and Forsyth County will compete in marksmanship, close-order drill and a "raider" (obstacle) course that combines elements of the police physical abilities test and the fire agility test. The winning unit will take home the Public Safety Challenge Cup, a perpetual trophy that is passed to the winner from one year to the next. READ MORE

International Village Music and Food Festival Returning Sept. 9

Cultures from all over the world will be showcased and celebrated through music, dancing, fashion shows, food, arts and crafts vendors, and information booths at this year’s International Village Food and Music Festival, being held from noon to 8 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 9, in Corpening Plaza. Admission is free. The festival will be preceded by a Naturalization Ceremony at 11 a.m. in Corpening Plaza. For more information about the International Village Food and Music Festival, go to InternationalVillage.ws. READ MORE

The Fairgrounds Farmers Market is holding a "Gourd-geous" Gourds Day on Saturday, Sept. 9. From 8 a.m. to noon there will be displays of decorated gourds, gourd decorating demonstrations for adults, and gourd activities for kids. There will also be music, vendors with gourd merchandise, and free gourd seeds and growing tips. The market is open every Saturday from 6 a.m. to 1 p.m. Enter through the parking area off of 27th Street.

Registration is now open for "Rejoice Winston-Salem," a non-denominational liturgical and spiritual dance competition Oct. 14 that is sponsored by the city and open to faith-based and other organizations such as dance studios based inside the city limits.

Entries are being accepted for solo dancers, for groups up to eight dancers ages 12-17, and for groups up to eight dancers ages 18 and up. Entry fees are $50 for solo dancers and $75 for groups. The competition is open to amateur dancers only. A total of 24 entries will be accepted and only one entry per organization is allowed. The winning solo dancer will receive $150 and the group winners will each receive $300. The deadline for entering is Sept. 29. Complete rules, the registration form and more information is posted at RejoiceWinstonSalem.com.

"Mini-Airshow" Being Held at Hobby Park

More than 50 radio-controlled model airplanes are expected to participate in a "mini-airshow" being held Saturday, Sept. 16, at Hobby Park, 2301 W. Clemmonsville Road from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The airshow is being organized by the Hobby Park RC Aircraft Club. Admission and parking are free; all proceeds from a hot-dog lunch and raffle will be donated to the Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina. Attendees who bring a bag with at least five cans of food will receive their choice of a free lunch or $5 in raffle tickets, said Bren Bailey, the club president. Learn more at hobbyparkrc.net.

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